Radiculopathy & sciatica decisions — 2022

The Board has remanded the claims for service connection due to inadequate medical opinions and new evidence is needed. The Veteran's right hip disorder and right lower extremity numbness are being reviewed, as well as his lip/facial cancer residuals.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability and cervical spine disability were denied higher ratings.,Radiculopathy in the upper and lower extremities, as well as femoral nerve paralysis and external cutaneous nerve paralysis of the lower extremity, were also denied higher ratings.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have not precluded him from obtaining and maintaining substantially gainful employment since January 1, 2013. However, he was marginally employed from September 9, 2008 to December 31, 2012.

The Board denied the Veteran's claim for a TDIU prior to January 31, 2011, finding that his service-connected conditions did not prevent him from securing and following substantially gainful employment.

The Board denied service connection for bilateral hearing loss, mid back and lower back pain with degenerative changes of the lumbar spine, sciatica, and periodic limb movement disorder as there is no evidence that these conditions began during or are otherwise related to service.,There were no current diagnoses meeting VA standards for hearing loss, and the Veteran did not have a diagnosed back disability. The Board also found no link between any in-service treatment and current back pain or sciatica.,The Veteran's claim for periodic limb movement disorder was denied as there is no evidence of a current diagnosis of this condition related to service.

The Board has remanded the case due to improper docketing and will now proceed under the legacy appeal system. The Veteran's claim for an earlier effective date for a 20 percent rating for right lower extremity radiculopathy affecting the sciatic nerve must be remanded for issuance of a Statement of the Case.

The Board has remanded the claim for additional opinions regarding secondary service connection for left knee arthritis, as new theories of entitlement were presented in a recent appeal. The Veteran's representative noted that his back and right knee problems likely affected his left knee disability.

The Board has remanded the claims for hypertension, testicular hypofunction, cervical degenerative disc disease, right upper extremity cervical radiculopathy, left upper extremity cervical radiculopathy, bronchitis, emphysema, COPD, esophageal disability, and thoracolumbar degenerative disc disease due to conflicting medical opinions.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities have not rendered him totally unable to obtain and sustain substantially gainful employment from August 16, 2019, to June 1, 2020.

The Veteran's left lower extremity sciatic radiculopathy is rated at 40 percent, but no higher.

The Veteran's DDD of the lumbosacral spine is granted a higher evaluation to 40 percent. The evaluations for bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy remain at 10 percent.

The Veteran withdrew his appeal of the issue regarding a rating in excess of 10 percent for right lower extremity radiculopathy during a hearing before the Board. As a result, the issue is dismissed.

The Veteran meets the schedular requirements for a TDIU from May 30, 2014, forward due to his service-connected disabilities. The Board finds that the combined effects of his back disability and other conditions prevent him from securing or following substantially gainful employment.

The Veteran's right upper and lower extremity radiculopathy are currently rated at 20 percent each, but the Board has determined that a higher rating is not warranted based on the current evidence.

The Veteran's service connection claims for various conditions are remanded due to the unavailability of his service department records and the need to attempt to corroborate the stressful events claimed by the Veteran.

The Veteran's increased ratings for cervical spine degenerative joint disease, thoracolumbar spine degenerative joint disease, and radiculopathy of the right lower extremity with demyelinating polyneuropathy are denied. A TDIU is granted for the period from February 7, 2018, to February 6, 2022, but dismissed for the period thereafter.

The Veteran's service-connected lumbar spine disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy rendered him unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation due to his physical limitations.

The Board found that the grant of service connection for a back disability and bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy was not clear and unmistakable error (CUE), thus allowing the appeal to proceed with restoration of service connection.

The Veteran is granted special monthly compensation based on the need for regular aid and attendance effective June 13, 2013. The Board found that he required assistance with activities of daily living due to his service-connected spine disability, bilateral lower extremity radiculopathy, and PTSD.

The Veteran's service-connected disabilities did not render him unable to follow substantially gainful employment prior to November 3, 2012.